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Opinion: Oakland Should Reject Jobs Policies that Increase Discrimination

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By Oakland Community Leaders 

There is a 13-to-1 racial wealth gap between the median White family and the median Black family in the U.S.

You can see one of the causes if you walk by any construction site and count up the number of Black workers you can find. One study listing the 33 whitest jobs in America found a large portion of them to be in the construction industry.

Ninety percent or more of electricians, painters, construction supervisors, tool and die makers, cement masons and others are white, according to a 2013 article in The Atlantic magazine.

Another national study found that minority-owned firms received only 57 cents for every dollar they would be expected to receive based on their availability in government contracting.

Women-owned firms obtained only 29 percent of the dollars they would be expected to receive.

In Oakland, African-American workers obtain 5 percent of the work on most city-funded construction projects, in spite of being 27 percent of the population.

The only project where the numbers are slightly better required a year-long battle by community groups to establish slightly more supportive hiring provisions, and even then some of the agreed-upon provisions were eliminated in the Project Labor Agreement negotiations when community groups were not allowed to be present.

Yet, the Building and Construction Trades Council of Alameda County has requested the City of Oakland (City) adopt a Project Labor Agreement (PLA) on projects funded by the Measure BB Transportation and Housing Bond Measure (Bond) approved by residents of Oakland for $346 million.

If and when the construction unions eliminate these racial disparities such a PLA might be reasonable. In the meantime, it would only reinforce discrimination, and mean that once again Black workers are paying heavy taxes for the building of projects where they are not allowed to work, and minority and women-owned companies are underrepresented.

The U.S. needs a stronger labor movement, and it can only be strong and united when individual unions purposefully and aggressively take on discrimination within their industries. The ILWU has a history of such action.

More recently, the hotel workers’ union has successfully demanded that hotels show progress in integrating their work force. Black workers have a higher percentage of unionization than any other ethnic group in the U.S., when they have the opportunity to join the unions in their industry.

The Building Trades should withdraw its request and work with creativity and enthusiasm on a set of policies that would reduce the deeply discriminatory situation for women and racially underrepresented workers and businesses in Oakland.

Now is the time, when jobs are a bit more plentiful and divisive competition is especially unwarranted. Among the needed steps:

  1. acknowledge the history of unfairness that has led to Black workers having less than 10 percent of the jobs on such projects as the 880 freeway replacement project;
  2. release figures on union membership by ethnicity, and release figures on the utilization of African-American journeymen;
  3. remove job requirements that serve as barriers, and provide support services to increase the numbers of African-American journeymen and apprentices;
  4. expand local apprenticeships in targeted zip codes and increase the percent of local Oakland hiring among apprentices;
  5. engage organizations that represent people of color and women in a massive campaign to integrate the industry;
  6. move apprenticeship programs to locations that are accessible to low-income urban residents;
  7. repudiate the arguments that hold up the precious banner of the labor movement in support of discriminatory policies;
  8. support Councilmember Desley Brooks’ ordiance to provide city funding for contruction job training, the Cypress Mandela Training Program and Citywide Job Centers.

In the meantime, it is the responsibility of the City of Oakland and its elected representatives to implement its own jobs policies that protect both labor and working conditions and the economic and job needs of Black, Latino, Asian, indigenous and female communities.

No policy which could potentially have a negative impact on Black workers and businesses should even be introduced for discussion until the disparity study the Council mandated years ago is finally completed and acted upon.

Any other course of action enhances both discrimination and gentrification.

Submitted by:
Kitty Kelly Epstein, PhD, Professor of Education and Urban Affairs; member of OaklandWORKS, author of “Organizing to Change a City”;
(2012)Margaret Gordon, Co-Director, West Oaklamd Environmental Indicators Project, former Port Commissioner;
Pastor Anthony L. Jenkins Sr., Taylor Memorial United Methodist Church;
Brian Beveridge, Co-Director West Oakland Environmental Indicators Project, OaklandWORKS Alliance;
Robyn Hodges, OaklandWORKS Alliance;
Paul Cobb, Publisher, Post News Group

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Oakland Post: Week of June 18 – 24, 2025

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of June 18 – 24, 2025

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Juneteenth: Celebrating Our History, Honoring Our Shared Spaces

It’s been empowering to watch Juneteenth blossom into a widely celebrated holiday, filled with vibrant outdoor events like cookouts, festivals, parades, and more. It’s inspiring to see the community embrace our history—showing up in droves to celebrate freedom, a freedom delayed for some enslaved Americans more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was signed.

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Wayne Wilson, Public Affairs Campaign Manager, Caltrans
Wayne Wilson, Public Affairs Campaign Manager, Caltrans

By Wayne Wilson, Public Affairs Campaign Manager, Caltrans

Juneteenth marks an important moment in our shared history—a time to reflect on the legacy of our ancestors who, even in the face of injustice, chose freedom, unity, and community over fear, anger, and hopelessness. We honor their resilience and the paths they paved so future generations can continue to walk with pride.

It’s been empowering to watch Juneteenth blossom into a widely celebrated holiday, filled with vibrant outdoor events like cookouts, festivals, parades, and more. It’s inspiring to see the community embrace our history—showing up in droves to celebrate freedom, a freedom delayed for some enslaved Americans more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was signed.

As we head into the weekend full of festivities and summer celebrations, I want to offer a friendly reminder about who is not invited to the cookout: litter.

At Clean California, we believe the places where we gather—parks, parade routes, street corners, and church lots—should reflect the pride and beauty of the people who fill them. Our mission is to restore and beautify public spaces, transforming areas impacted by trash and neglect into spaces that reflect the strength and spirit of the communities who use them.

Too often, after the music fades and the grills cool, our public spaces are left littered with trash. Just as our ancestors took pride in their communities, we honor their legacy when we clean up after ourselves, teach our children to do the same, and care for our shared spaces.

Small acts can inspire big change. Since 2021, Clean California and its partners have collected and removed over 2.9 million cubic yards of litter. We did this by partnering with local nonprofits and community organizations to organize grassroots cleanup events and beautification projects across California.

Now, we invite all California communities to continue the incredible momentum and take the pledge toward building a cleaner community through our Clean California Community Designation Program. This recognizes cities and neighborhoods committed to long-term cleanliness and civic pride.

This Juneteenth, let’s not only celebrate our history—but also contribute to its legacy. By picking up after ourselves and by leaving no litter behind after celebrations, we have an opportunity to honor our past and shape a cleaner, safer, more vibrant future.

Visit CleanCA.com to learn more about Clean California.

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OPINION: California’s Legislature Has the Wrong Prescription for the Affordability Crisis — Gov. Newsom’s Plan Hits the Mark

Last month, Gov. Newsom included measures in his budget that would encourage greater transparency, accountability, and affordability across the prescription drug supply chain. His plan would deliver real relief to struggling Californians. It would also help expose the hidden markups and practices by big drug companies that push the prices of prescription drugs higher and higher. The legislature should follow the Governor’s lead and embrace sensible, fair regulations that will not raise the cost of medications.

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Rev. Dr. Lawrence E. VanHook. Courtesy of Rev. Dr. Lawrence E. VanHook.
Rev. Dr. Lawrence E. VanHook. Courtesy of Rev. Dr. Lawrence E. VanHook.

By Rev. Dr. Lawrence E. VanHook

As a pastor and East Bay resident, I see firsthand how my community struggles with the rising cost of everyday living. A fellow pastor in Oakland recently told me he cuts his pills in half to make them last longer because of the crushing costs of drugs.

Meanwhile, community members are contending with skyrocketing grocery prices and a lack of affordable healthcare options, while businesses are being forced to close their doors.

Our community is hurting. Things have to change.

The most pressing issue that demands our leaders’ attention is rising healthcare costs, and particularly the rising cost of medications. Annual prescription drug costs in California have spiked by nearly 50% since 2018, from $9.1 billion to $13.6 billion.

Last month, Gov. Newsom included measures in his budget that would encourage greater transparency, accountability, and affordability across the prescription drug supply chain. His plan would deliver real relief to struggling Californians. It would also help expose the hidden markups and practices by big drug companies that push the prices of prescription drugs higher and higher. The legislature should follow the Governor’s lead and embrace sensible, fair regulations that will not raise the cost of medications.

Some lawmakers, however, have advanced legislation that would drive up healthcare costs and set communities like mine back further.

I’m particularly concerned with Senate Bill (SB) 41, sponsored by Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco), a carbon copy of a 2024 bill that I strongly opposed and Gov. Newsom rightly vetoed. This bill would impose significant healthcare costs on patients, small businesses, and working families, while allowing big drug companies to increase their profits.

SB 41 would impose a new $10.05 pharmacy fee for every prescription filled in California. This new fee, which would apply to millions of Californians, is roughly five times higher than the current average of $2.

For example, a Bay Area family with five monthly prescriptions would be forced to shoulder about $500 more in annual health costs. If a small business covers 25 employees, each with four prescription fills per month (the national average), that would add nearly $10,000 per year in health care costs.

This bill would also restrict how health plan sponsors — like employers, unions, state plans, Medicare, and Medicaid — partner with pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) to negotiate against big drug companies and deliver the lowest possible costs for employees and members. By mandating a flat fee for pharmacy benefit services, this misguided legislation would undercut your health plan’s ability to drive down costs while handing more profits to pharmaceutical manufacturers.

This bill would also endanger patients by eliminating safety requirements for pharmacies that dispense complex and costly specialty medications. Additionally, it would restrict home delivery for prescriptions, a convenient and affordable service that many families rely on.

Instead of repeating the same tired plan laid out in the big pharma-backed playbook, lawmakers should embrace Newsom’s transparency-first approach and prioritize our communities.

Let’s urge our state legislators to reject policies like SB 41 that would make a difficult situation even worse for communities like ours.

About the Author

Rev. Dr. VanHook is the founder and pastor of The Community Church in Oakland and the founder of The Charis House, a re-entry facility for men recovering from alcohol and drug abuse.

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